happy new year...

i'll be chilln at home...all alone! ah!

i'm either a total loser, or a modern genius.

good luck in the new year everyone!

no, i havent forgotten you internet!

no....i haven't forgotten about this blog! merry Christmas all! i'm moved in, but not yet unpacked. perhaps i shall post some pictures when i'm done unpacking in my new place!


happy new year!

moving

well, i've finally found a place with graham and evan. it seems like it will be a very nice fit for us and i'm happy that i'll retain some privacy in the basement of the place. not only will i have my own room/full bathroom, but also a very large "rec room" and half way kitchen with a freezer & fridge. the rest of the house is great too especially the living room, so i think we'll have some great times there. i am kind of concerned about graham not having enough space to work on his art etc, but i imagine we'll work something out if he needs to use part of the living room etc.

anyway, so aside from signing the lease for that and meeting Herb (the santa-clause like landlord) we went around old town to find a place to eat, and i can't believe i'll be living so close to a place like king street. i'm going to get some fantastic pictures!

speaking of which, i just researched a little aout online user content rights and management for places like facebook & flickr etc. it seems very extraordinary that web sites (especially those VERY popular ones) are so greedy as to steal whatever they want from whatever you upload and not even make it clear to the users that it's going on. though, i think it's unlikely that somewhere like flickr would steal your photos especially if you actually take the time to setup your privacy settings for all your uploads (which i certainly do). now, facebook...i just upload and go. i really don't care what they steal as the resolution of the photos isn't all that useable anyway....and hey i'm an unknown so if i'm discovered because facebook steals one of my images and uses it in some huge ad....it can't hurt my career.

mom's calling gotta peace...

longest without posting!! and it's halloween

ah! it's been an entire week since i've been able to post anything last....that sucks. it's been a busy last week. went home to lynchburg last weekend. that was very fun. it's always nice to see my mother, and i finally was able to give tucker his birthday gift (amazon kindle)....which, needless to say he was shocked about. aside from that it was just osakas and chilln'. the work week has been very chill...say for one day when the fourth estate re-opened. that was a bit hectic, but i was able to get all the computers up and running in just an hour....so GO me! anyway, tonight is halloween and there are tons of kids out and about. it's surprising to me how early it is getting dark these days. kind of sketch for the little ones to be out and about in such darkness, but it seems most parents are with 'em...so good. my plans tonight = movie with greg and lauren. it'll be fun to hang out with them outside of work, which rarely happens these days. tomorrow, i head off to newport news. should be a fun trip, hopefully it goes as well as i'm imagining in my mind. it's been a few months, but i think there is still something there. in fact, i know there is, but it's certainly difficult imagining that anything serious could develop seeing as it's so far away...and for the most part i don't have a car here. all i know is i'm happy around there, and that's all i really care about right now. i suppose nobody has any clue what i'm actually talking about, but that's okay with me seeing as how this is a public blog.

amateur musicals?

so, the internet is down and i'm writing this blog via notepad, or at least the mac equivalent. anyway, things are going pretty well. slow, but well. i've been hit with a large influx of music from several of my favorite bands recently. copeland, forgive durden, and anberlin just to name a few. it's really crazy how great these albums are and to hear how each group has progressed so dramatically. over the last few days i've been reading about forgive durdens' new release, which is sure to be interesting. basically, three out of the four members in the band decided to quit which left the singer (and primary song writer) left to fend for himself. well, he certainly outdid himself by writing an entire MUSICAL! i mean wtf? impressive to say the least. i've listened to a lot of the stream they've got going on the blog about it and it sounds insanely good! it really makes me want to sit down for two years and just work on something from the perspective of an entire orchestra. i'm pretty sure i have no idea what i'm doing, but still...worth a shot. in fact, i might sit down with a few pieces of sheet music of something already composed and just convert it over the midi to get used to the software i have. after-all, i have all these capabilities i might as well try and use them to the fullest extent i can. it's not like i'm doing anything better with my time. so, it's wonderful to hear albums and be inspired to work on more of my own stuff. i'm sure all these artists would love to find out just how inspirational they are! **hmm looks like some sort of band is setting up to play downstairs here at ebenezer's. interesting....**

well, this is epically short as my laptop is about to die and the internet is continuing not to work at all....sooo.....until next time!

like a wall covered with warm light

it feels like i'm sitting in a room. a very small room. just enough room to move comfortably with all my stuff. everything and anything i need to create whatever i want. the walls are lit with warm tungsten lighting which casts shadows over everything in its path. the floor is wooden and the ceiling is low.

this is how i can feel my mind closing in on me. it's not a bad thing. this is exactly how i feel before huge bursts of inspiration...something i've been longing for so long! it's kind of like "the night is darkest just before the dawn" i suppose. it's not depression & it's not anxiety. it's just pressure building up on my thoughts, emotions, reactions, and physical being. i suppose this is all being triggered by my recent trip to ny, which attributed to the realization that i'm not exactly where i want to be and i don't know how i'm going to get there. i'm not exactly in a rush to leave DC or anything, but i'm excited to know where things are going to lead in my life. it's so up in the air! (it's always awkward to write when people are looking at me through the window. maybe it's just me being paranoid, but it's effin lame).

i like that it's starting to get cold again. it's so great to be able to bundle up in as many layers as i want. break out gloves, a scarf, or a sweater. whatever. it's awesome. kind of like copeland's new album is awesome. it's amazing actually. though, i think i could argue that it's not really copeland anymore. they've switched out a few members since they began, and they've definitely lost their "rock" edge, which is both bad and good. anyway, if there is anyone that randomly comes across this blog i suggest you buy copeland's "you are my sunshine" and all their other albums too.

until next time...

weddings weddings everywhere

so many people seem to suddenly be getting hitched. one day i'm sitting around hearing about one breakup or another then suddenly all of my (college) friends are married! craziness. I suppose there is a reasonable explanation for three of them...ryan, nick, and now greg. they've all been dating their (now wives) girlfriends since high school, which is a formidable feat to be sure. still, i can't help but think how their lives will be different in comparison to mine by making such an intense commitment so early in life. i guess there isn't too much more to say about it other than of all my other friends, those three couples stand the best chance (by far) of actually being successful for the long term.

moving on, chilled with some friends of mine from HS a while today, which is always fun, though a little weird. i don't get to see them nearly as much as nathan or jon & greg etc. so it can be difficult trying to stay current in our conversations etc. but it sounds like i'll be living with these guys (possibly) in the next few months. i'm not too sure how i feel about it yet as i always get a strange sense of reality whenever i hang out with (i'll call him something made up) joe. he lives such a reckless lifestyle, yet is still capable of retaining some sort of false sense of moral strength. it's hard to explain, but it's certainly a conflict i sense whenever i'm with him, and it makes me feel uncomfortable. i know his actions do not reflect what he truly wants to be as a person, which is a shame. it's practically a waste. i don't want to get into the details of his "recklessness" but let's just say i'm more then 85% sure that his first few marriages (yes few) will fail hopelessly. the only possible way that joe would be able to sustain a marriage would be if he married a woman that was completely able to change him and his outlook on people and life. bah, anyway i'm sure that i'll talk more about him in future posts.

one cool thing i forgot to mention about greg's wedding (if i even mentioned it to begin with *i'm too lazy to re-read this post) is that i got to hang out with all of his CA family. they are so cool, and i don't think they realize how highly i think of them. i mean they've actually made it. craig can sit there and talk to me about how he's executive producing some new cartoon show and i'm like DUDE you're sitting right next to me! haha, i suppose it's probably weird for them to think about things from that perspective as i'm sure that they consider themselves normal people, which they are, but the difference is still there. they've done what so few people are actually able to pull off. anyway, my conversations with craig and his wife were very interesting, especially with craig. he talked about how foster's home for imaginary friends was finishing up it's 6th season, and how he felt that cartoons would (ideally) only last a season or two at most. this was an interesting thought which we discussed in some length. basically, it allows the creators of these shows to really explore many more creative outlets and it opens up the door for a lot of ideas that would normally be turned down. long story short, i related that kind of thinking to music and the current revolution the industry and experiencing, and i think he understood where i was coming from. i had had a few drinks at that point so i hope i wasn't rambling too much about nothingness. anyway, it's always so nice to be around Californians as the few that i've met have been very easy going and overall just happy....maybe that's cause they're successful! haha. oh well.

time to wrap this up by saying that though ebenezer's is a great place to chill and write, i miss nyc a lot. it is definitely the city i need to live in...someday.

in manhattan...

so, blogging in nyc is a lot different than DC. it might be because i'm so used to being in DC at this point, and i haven't been in ny in so long. people here are so damn unique. it seems like pretty much everybody here has a style all to their own, and it's totally different than i remember it being. i find myself wondering if every other person i see is rich, or not. either very rich or very smart. hmm. are there any average working low income people working/living in manhattan? i feel like there must be! but i don't see how that can be possible with how expensive everything is here. though, i live in work in DC which isn't far behind in the cost of living. so perhaps. anyway, i feels strange being here without anybody else. especially carrie. this was always our city and it's actually very depressing to walk around and see all these familiar places---without her. very depressing actually. it makes me want to call her up and beg for her to come back and work on things together....though truly i know that is not the answer. it's hard to imagine finding another person that will compare to carrie even remotely, but i have faith that it will one day happen. just need to be patient and aware. by the way this is the BEST mocha frap i've had in my life. literally. the best. it actually tastes like chocolate. i wonder if they made it incorrectly because it seems very loaded down with flavor--so much so i don't see how they could make a profit using so much syrup etc. 

so i started to read sex, drugs, and coco puffs again. i kind of lost interest in it a couple of months ago because the writer started to sound like any/ever realization he ever came to was a result of some trip he had while stoned. thankfully, the recent chapters have lightened up a bit and actually started to make some applicable sense. i guy writes so eloquently it's scary, and almost every point/topic he discusses and apply directly to me in every way and from examples that apply directly to me. it's crazy. he basically writes as i wish i could...more intelligently and with broader depth and focus.

so, i'm going to head out and try and find gill and this venue i'm supposed to be photographing. i'll likely be back at this exact same starbucks later tonight trying to upload my photos to ryan, but i might try and see if he can wait until just a little later tonight so i have a faster connection at my hotel. hopefully, i'll have some time to grab some shots around central park and other areas afterwards. maybe even times square if my feet are up to it...who knows.

until later...

the day before i go home.

i know that someday i will call NYC home. i've always known that. my mother literally (as do i) remembers the day that i told her i want to live in a new york apartment. i was 5 & we lived in colorado springs i even memorized the zip code of the new york, new york address in the stick stickly nickelodeon commercials--10185. kind of sad, but it confirms the dedication my mind has always held. i definitely didn't choose new york, but new york chose me. it's gripped me and drawn me to it like a magnet. when i'm there i feel like i've never felt. each time a totally unique experiance. there's some feeling that i can finally breathe. i guess the best description i can give is like falling in love. the feeling you get when you and your significant other both realize that you're hearts belong to one another. it's infinite and addicting. unstoppable and encouraging.

over more recent years it's definitely become "the place to live" for young 20-30 somethings, but that's never been the reason i've had an affinitiy for it. in fact, i hate the stereo typical new yorker 20 something. talk about rich and out of touch. i want to live in NY to experiance the true city atmosphere. the energy and quickness. the isolation and emmersion. to be poor and struggling. to constantly be surrounded by life and lights.

i'm headed to NYC tomorrow and i'm really excited. a bit nervous because the expectations are pretty high that i take some great photos...and there's always the chance that the entire network could come crashing down at work here in DC! oh well, whatever happens happens. pura vita! i'm sure i'll try and blog a bit if i can find the time. i also want to get some shots of the city, but it's unlikely i'll have time to do that either....we'll see.

Schedule:
9:30AM---catch bus at 9:30am 11th and G NW to arrive at 1:45pm New York 33rd and 7t
3:00PM---check in ~3PM at Holiday Inn Midtown 57th Street 440 WEST 57TH STREET
4:30PM---head to 20 Cooper Square NYU to shoot the event and help Gil setup anything

Panelists:

• Jill Abramson, Managing Editor, New York Times
• Tom Curley, President, The Associated Press
• Dan Rather, Global Correspondent & Managing Editor, Dan Rather Reports, HDNet
• Jay Rosen, Media Critic and NYU Faculty Member

Event will probably end around 9PM?
Head back to hotel and try and grab some shots of the city/hang out

Next day:
Wake up as early as possible. Maybe grab some food from the bread factory?
12:00PM---Check out at 12PM
1:00PM---catch bus at 1PM at New York 33rd and 7th
5:15PM---arrive 5:15 pm Washington, D.C. 11th and G NW
catch metro to old town alexandria asap and take photos at greg's rehersal dinner etc.
SLEEP

All Day Saturday
Early- meet up with nathan to hang at greg's wedding and stuff

Sunday
Sleep in.
Chill with Evan and Graham

good morning fire eater

so, i'm practically sitting in direct sunlight....fitting after a day of staring at direct LCD lights, haha. Had a three hour booking this morning for photography of an event that was surprisingly interesting. It was a bunch of scholars, engineers, and the former governor of NY discussing the National Electric Grid. Very fascinating stuff...especially the keynote speaker Peter...something. Anyway, he was the weird, totally nerd, and obviously genius type. He just knew wtf he was saying...so rare. I felt a little more awkward than usual because of my clothing, but it's all good 'cause I got my official press blug black t-shirt now! So, after the event I spent my hours editing up the photos and uploading them to flickr...it took 45 mins JUST to upload all the shots. 1.10 GB worth. Hopefully they feel they got their monies worth. I feel like most of them turned out well...especially if all they're using them for is web related stuff. I need to start using my 50 1.4 lens more, but I'm always afraid I'll need the 18-50mm for a group shot or something. I LOVE the 50 1.4, but I'm so lame and unskilled that having no zoom really freaks me out. Oh well, tomorrow morning I will force myself to suck it up and go for it. Plus, I'll have my d50 as a backup with a lens ready to rock if needed in a hurry.

So, for the rest of today I'm planning on going home and mixing up a song that I actually recorded way back in February. Just finished the lead vocals last night, and will finalize the backing vox (hopefully) tonight. I think it's going to be my best mix to date. Its got that elusive "in your face" punch and warmth that everyone seems to always be after. There's also a shit ton of instrumentation goin' on. Yes, SHIT ton. I have no idea how I was able to write such an "advanced" song, but I definitely pulled it out of my ass! Anyway, more on that later...once I've received some feedback from friends & fans.

On a more serious note, I fear that I'm really starting to be unhappy at my job. Maybe it's just the time of the year, or the fact that I'm single, or something I'm unaware of, but I definitely feel like something has changed. It might be a result of the slow summer and/or the fact that there are several large projects people seem to expect me to take on---and it just can't happen. I don't have the time! Though things are slow a lot of the time right now that doesn't mean I am able to take on a 4-6 month long project. Bah! Anyway. I'm going to stop journalling like a 12 year old emo boy.

an arresting development...

so, on my walk home today i witnessed a young man being arrested & surrounded by no less than 5 police cars (overkill anyone?). he looked like a young teenage boy, but come to think of it i can't remember what he actually looked like. i tried not to stare....lord knows everyone else was. maybe i've seen too many episodes of Cops HD or something, but surprisingly it didn't strike me as much of a big deal. maybe it's a sign that i've been living in the city too long! haha, who knows. either way, it made enough of an impact to discuss here on my lovely blog.

so today, i thought about how cool it would be to write a book. to answer, it'd be very cool. the coolest. i don't think i have near enough the discipline to tackle a creative project that huge. not even close. it's nice to think about though. maybe someday. thankfully i haven't had to use those two words too much in life. "maybe someday."

so some crazy guy just started talking to a couple of attractive girls about parenting and the inner city kids of the dc. it's pretty interesting to see how awkward he is making this girl. she just nods along, and goes with it. how sweet. haha this guy keeps talking on so many tangents. hahaha and now i can't stop smiling. wow. now he's on about the cheap labor in dc. this is great! ironically he is fulfilling the request that is the title of my blog. strangers should talk. perhaps i should clarify "strangers should talk...if they want to."

anyway, so i'm gonna need to stop laughing now and perhaps he'll go away. yay! he left. that was weird.

so back on topic. a book. yes, maybe someday.

forgetting sarah marshall

seriously, one of the funniest movies of all time.